From understanding aging to 3D archaeology: U of T research gets a boost

Three U of T research projects have been awarded nearly $6.7 million from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council’s (SSHRC) new Partnership Grants funding program.

The program supports formal collaboration among academic researchers, businesses and other partners that will advance knowledge and understanding on critical issues of intellectual, social, economic and cultural significance. By fostering mutual co-operation and sharing of intellectual leadership, the grants allow partners to innovate, build institutional capacity and mobilize research knowledge in accessible ways.

In this, the first year of the program, three U of T projects made applications and all were successful. The university received 12 per cent of the total awards made, a higher share than any other university.

Three U of T-based projects will share a total of nearly $6.7 million:

Professor David Hulchanski of the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work is the lead investigator on project entitled “Neighbourhood Inequality, Diversity and Change: Trends, Processes, Consequences and Policy Options for Canada’s Large Metropolitan Areas.” Working with a host of researchers and partners including media outlets, government and foundations, he will seek to understand increasing income and wealth polarization in affluent societies and the crises emerging from them, such as the “Occupy” protests.

“By analyzing urban socioeconomic trends over 40 years, this research will enhance our understanding of contemporary inequalities in Canadian cities,” said Hulchanski.

Working from the knowledge that in many cities, wealth and poverty are increasingly concentrated in disparate neighbourhoods, leading to unequal access to urban opportunities and amenities, the project will identify potential interventions. This will be the first attempt to study these issues on comparative basis, both nationally and internationally.

With $2.5 million in funding from SSHRC, the partners hope to identify public policies and specific local interventions that can mitigate the effects of income polarization and exclusion.

“The ultimate purpose of this research,” said Hulchanski, "is to understand and thereby change the trajectory of Canadian society, to move from inequality and the isolation of certain social groups to a more inclusive society in which youth have hope for the future, newcomers are welcomed, the elderly have support in their communities, Aboriginal people are not isolated from mainstream society and those on low incomes can be contributing members of a community.”

Lynn McDonald of the Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, who also serves as Director of the Institute for Life Course and Aging and Scientific Director of the National Initiative for the Care of the Elderly, is the lead investigator on “Engaged Scholarship: Evaluation of Knowledge Mobilization for Older Adults in the Community,” which received just under $2.2 million in SSHRC funding.

The proportion of older adults in our population is growing and they and their support networks have only limited knowledge of issues related to aging. Evidence shows that 30 to 40 per cent do not receive appropriate support and 20 to 25 per cent receive support that is not needed or is potentially harmful. The project aims to learn if knowledge about aging is reaching those who need it and if it’s being used to best advantage. The researchers will evaluate a set of pocket tools in digital and paper format that contain information about the core challenges of aging, including financial literacy, legal issues and elder abuse.

Finally, Professor Timothy Harrison of the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations is heading up a project entitled, “Computational Research on the Ancient Near East: An Archaeological Data Integration, Simulation, and 3-D Visualization Initiative,” (CRANE), which has received just under $2 million in funding.

The ancient Near East is the birthplace of the world’s first complex societies — it claims the first domestication of plants and animals, first writing systems, first political and religious institutions and first commercial networks. This makes the region a good lab to study long-term growth of human communities and their interaction with the natural world.

The CRANE project, an international multidisciplinary research collaboration of archaeologists, computer scientists and paleo-environmental specialists, will transform our knowledge of the region, giving insight into current concerns, including global warming and the role cultural conflict plays in affecting political and social change.

“Archeologists at the University of Toronto are not only exploring the past but are also on the cutting edge of scientific research,” said Professor Michael Chazan of anthropology, a co-investigator on the project. “The CRANE project will reshape our understanding of the ancient Middle East and will also lead to significant innovation in digital technology.”

The group, which includes partners IBM Canada, the Royal Ontario Museum and many other universities, will create a sustainable, scalable, user-driven vehicle for large-scale data management. As well, they will use new software techniques to simulate ancient societies in 3D, allowing for the visualization of behaviour of people, animals and vegetation. 

“Congratulations to Professors Harrison, Hulchanksi and McDonald, and to their collaborators,” said Professor Peter Lewis, U of T’s associate vice-president (research). “These three projects will greatly enhance our understanding of the problems of current and past civilizations. Equally as important are the partnerships that will emerge from them. Working together with other universities, industry, government and the non-profit sector is the surest way to conduct research that creates real impact. My thanks to SSHRC for supporting this innovative and potentially transformative work.”

The grants were announced May 25 by Gary Goodyear, Canada’s minister of state for science and technology, in a speech at the 2012 Congress of the Social Sciences and Humanities in Kitchener, Ontario.